John's Art
by systematic-alchemy
Summary: Clarke and Murphy have been friends for as long as either of them remember. Through thick and thin, they'll stick together.
1. Chapter 1

"Mom! You have to help!" Clarke's tears cracked the request. "Johnny's sick! And you're a doctor! You have to help him!"

Abby sucked in a breath. "Clarke, darling, I can't do that. We used all the medication we could on him. There's nothing I can do."

Clarke ran off, near blind from sobbing. Somehow she made it to the Murphy's cabin. Sniffing back her tears she forced herself to smile. Taking the turtle shaped ocarina out of her pocket, she plopped down next to John on his bed. Assuming his parents were getting him something to try and make him feel better, she nudged his shoulder. "Hey! I made you something."

John's hair stuck to his forehead and his eyes while glassy, lit up when he saw her. "Hey, Art." Turning the turtle over in his hands a couple times, his forehead creased in confusion. "Why's it got holes?"

"It's an instrument, an ocarina. You like music and you liked the turtle I drew last week, so I thought you'd like it."

"Neat. I can't breathe, though." And the truth of that made evident with the subtle wheeze with every inhale.

"It's for when you get be-"

Mr. Murphy rushed through the door, something in his hand, but before he got to his son, the Guards grabbed him. "Alex Murphy, you're under arrest for theft."

"He didn't do anything!" Clarke tried to pulled Mr. Murphy away from the Guards.

"Let my dad go!" John, as weak as he was, tried as well, only to be tossed aside, his head striking the edge of a shelf. Panicked Clarke abandoned Mr. Murphy to help her best friend.

"He's hurt! Help my son!" The guards ignored Alex Murphy and continued to drag him away. "I love you, John! I love you!"

Holding John while he coughed and sobbed, Clarke cried with him. "I'm sorry, Johnny. I wasn't strong enough. I'm so sorry."

* * *

2 years later

Clarke heard her dad answer the door. "Clarke?" Was that Murphy? He never called her Clarke. He only ever called her Art, a double entendre on her art skills and her namesake.

"In her bunk."

Murphy walked zombie-like around the divider, his face slack, worrying her. "What's wrong?"

"She said I killed him." His voice sounded hollow and foreign.

"Killed who? Who said?" Clarke turned his face toward hers, as she brushed his always messy hair back.

He met her gaze with emptiness. "My dad."

"Your mom said that to you? Oh, John! She's wrong." She pulled him into a hug that he didn't return. "I'm going to bitch her out. How dare she say something that awful and untrue."

"She's dead." He fell out of her arms and onto her bed. "I, ah, I found her - on the floor. Um, she'd puked again -"

Once again Clarke wrapped her arms around him. "I get the picture. You should get some rest. Lie down and get some sleep."

Nodding like his head wasn't quite attached, he did as told. Clarke covered him up and went to talk to her parents. John wasn't going to get some family assigned to him at random. He was going to live here. Her parents would be okay with that, and if they weren't she'd make them be okay with it.

* * *

5 years later

The dropship felt like it would explode any second as they entered the atmosphere. A boy with long hair and a cap floated in front of Clarke and Murphy. "Hey, you're the traitors who've been in solitary for a year."

"You're the idiot who wasted a month of oxygen on an illegal spacewalk."

"Come on Art, you're being way too nice to this guy. I think calling him a fucking moron would be more fitting."

"Of course."

"I wonder if there'll be turtles."

"Not that you can play music on." She grabbed John's hand as they plummeted to Earth.


	2. Chapter 2

John looked over Art's shoulder at the topographical map, seeing what he assumed she also saw. "I don't think we're in the right place."

"Agreed." Clarke walked away with Murphy by her side. "You see it don't you?"

He looked over to the next mountain peak. "This doesn't even look like the same region. Nukes can only change so much, right?"

"Right. We need to figure out where we are and tell the Ark." Clarke rolled the useless map into a tube.

Wells walked up to them. "That might be a problem. Reentry fried the electric in the drop ship."

Clarke turned away from Wells. "We're on our own then."

Murphy glowered at Finn succeeding at scaring him off Clarke for the moment. "And if we don't want it to get all Lord of the Flies, we need to get the other criminals on our side. And Wells buddy, won't do us any favors there."

"Then use that in our favor and…" The rest of Wells' statement died when Murphy punched him in the mouth.

"First son? Try first to die if you keep that up!" Murphy laid into Wells until his fist hurt and Wells' eyes were swelled.

Trusting Murphy and Wells on this, Clarke called out to the other drop ship kids. "We can't run things like it's the Ark down here! But we need rules and a system. Wells thought we should just follow his father's bidding, but even if we wanted to, we can't. They didn't drop us on Mt. Weather. It looks like Mt. Weather isn't a choice. And if we want to survive we need to know who has what skills. And then decide who's in charge."

Bellamy stepped forward, showing off his gun. "I think I should be in charge since I'm the one with the gun."

Johnny smirked when Bellamy turned his back on him. A rock to the back of Blake's head ended that stupidity. He grabbed the gun and checked for a pulse. "He'll live. Anyone else want to assume leadership without a vote?"

When no one stepped forward, Clarke said, "Who scored over a five in any Earth Skill?"

There were a decent number of hands raised. "Line up over here." Murphy pointed to the right. "Does anyone have any leadership skills?"

One hand raised other than Clarke's raised. She walked up to them and asked, "What's your experience?"

"I was on track to be a teacher until I got attacked," Fox said. "They arrested both of us." She glared at a boy with a smug expression. When she looked back to Clarke, she asked, "What did you do?"

"Treason. Johnny and I thought everyone on the Ark deserved to know they were running out of air. The CO2 scrubbers are failing with no known fix so far."

"That explains why now." Fox arched an eyebrow. "We'll put it to a vote between the two of us in an hour?"

Clarke nodded and turned back to the crowd. "In an hour according to my watch, we'll put it to a vote. Who do you want in charge? Fox or myself?"

Murphy held the gun on Bellamy as he regained consciousness. "We need to figure out what to do with people like Blake here."

With her head cocked to the side, Clarke deliberated the issue. "The uppermost section of the drop ship locks from the outside. We'll put him there for the time being."

"And then what?" Finn asked appearing out of nowhere.

"Remember the old method? When there were trials?" Clarke asked. "He'll stand trial and we'll go from there." She walked past Finn to the line of people with high scores in Earth Skills while Murphy marched Bellamy to drop ship jail.

Finn followed Clarke. "What if he's found guilty?"

"Then we'll decide what to do. Together." She looked at the line of prisoners. "Do we have any trackers?"

"Me," Finn said with a grin.

"I can track." Harper stepped forward.

"Builders?" Clarke asked.

Three kids stepped forward.

"Botany?"

Wells limped over and two others raised their hands.

"OK, what we need most are shelter, water, and food, for that to happen we need tools and bags. Builders, I need you to work on making tools so we can build and farm. Botany experts, I'm sending you with the trackers to find food and anything we might need for medicine. But try to make some weapons out of drop ship parts before going anywhere." Clarke watched them follow her orders and decided that she should check on Johnny. His temper was short and if Bellamy did or said the wrong thing, well she didn't want to consider what he'd do now that he had a gun.


	3. Chapter 3

Murphy was pleased at the direction of the vote. All but three kids voted Clarke in as leader. He dropped provisions off with Bellamy, some water and a few nuts they found then returned to the fire to keep it going.

Clarke used the back of the useless map to list out plans using a piece of burnt stick as her pencil. The hunting parties weren't back yet, and the sun was setting, but she wasn't worried about anyone yet. "Murphy?"

"What's up?" he asked as he speared the fire.

"Don't throw your weight around. Let's keep the violence to a minimum for a switch."

"Hey, I never started any of those fights."

"Except the ones you did start which was most of them." Clarke quirked an eyebrow at him and he laughed.

"Yeah, except those." He glanced at the dropship. "Think that Monty kid can get communications up?"

"I hope so." Clarke eyed the kids making tools from the metal of the ship, and others working to build a smokehouse.

Octavia walked up to them. "How long are you going to keep my brother locked up?"

"No longer than we have to," Clarke said as she stood up. "I can take you to see him if you want."

"I'll see my brother, and I don't need you to do it." Octavia tried to walk off but Murphy blocked her way.

"What you'll do is cooperate. Unless of course you want to die down here." Off Clarke's look, he said, "I'm not going to hurt you, but we can make sure no one helps you either. Think about working with us rather than against us."

Clarke recognized Johnny's lustful gaze and rolled her eyes. "Octavia, please. Talk to your brother and get him to calm down so we can let him out."

Murphy snorted. "Yeah, before it smells like a septic system up there."

"You're a pig," Octavia spat.

"I'm a loveable pig, right, Art?"

"You know I'm the only one that loves you," Clarke said with a smirk. "Come on, Octavia, let's go talk to your brother."

Murphy slipped the gun into Clarke's hand as she passed him. "Watch out for him."

"I will."

The women walked away from the fire. "Your friend's an asshole."

"Not going to argue with you." Clarke sighed. "John's had it hard, but he's family."

"What about Wells?"

"He betrayed us, Johnny and me. But he's smart, so he's useful and that's good enough right now." Clarke climbed the ladder as soon as they got into the ship. When she got through the hatch, Bellamy took a swing at her with a piece of pipe he'd broken away. But Clarke wasn't an idiot and expected something like that and ducked so the pipe hit the edge of the opening sending a bone rattling vibration up his arms.

"Fuck!" he yelled as he fell onto his ass.

Clarke rolled her eyes and finished climbing into his cell. "I brought your sister with me."

The relief that swept across his face tugged at Clarke's heartstrings. When the siblings hugged, Clarke smiled slightly. "You ready to talk reasonably?"

"Bell give her a chance."

"Why should I?"

"Because, she's smart and getting things done that will keep us alive. You too." Octavia pat his chest then sat down. "Please."

Bellamy sat down and whispered something to Octavia about how Clarke would kill him if she knew what he did to get on the ship. He wasn't quiet enough to keep his concern from Clarke.

"I'll be more likely to leave you alive if you tell me what you did."

He eyed the hilt of the gun in her waistband. "I killed someone to get on the ship."

"A guard?" Clarke asked.

"Worse."

"A counselor?"

His expression got even more grim.

Clarke nodded. "Thelonous." Her lips were set in a line as she thought through the problem. "What would you do if I let you out of here right now?"

"What needs done?" he asked.

"Nothing more tonight. But tomorrow there'll be plenty. However, I can't let you out yet. You're going to be put on trial first for trying to take leadership before a vote, not for murdering Thelonous. I'll keep that to myself. Arguments start at first light." Clarke waited for Bellamy to nod before saying one last thing. "I won't speak against you. That's all I can promise."

Octavia squirmed. "I guess that's better than you passing judgement."

"It is." Clarke gave the pair one more look over before returning to the hatch. "You staying up here with your brother tonight?"

"I can?"

"I don't see why not."

"Thank you." Octavia squeezed Bellamy's hand.

His thanks were sarcastic though. Clarke shrugged before climbing down and locking the hatch behind her.

When she got outside the first of the hunting parties returned. They had a deer strung up on a tree branch as they walked into camp. The deer had two heads, but would serve well as food. They couldn't increase their chances of radiation poisoning, breathing the air didn't already cause. The next party was on the first's heels but this they didn't have food, they had a dead kid. The one with goggles was laying on a makeshift stretcher. Clarke ran up to them.

"What happened?"

Finn answered her. "When the last grounders died on the Ark, they weren't the last grounders. The good news is we can survive, but only if the grounders don't kill us first."

"I see." Clarke breathed in deeply. "Take him around back to be buried. Monroe made a shovel, see her about using it. When you're done, come back and tell me everything."

Wells walked up. "I'll bury him."

"Thank you, Wells." Clarke paused then added, "You should get Monty. I think they were friends."

Jaha nodded and walked off.

"What happened, Finn?"

"We were doing what you said, tracking a boar for food when we came across a river. We weren't being quiet. But nothing happened until Jasper crossed to the other side of the river. Then a grounder hit him with a spear from three hundred feet with pinpoint accuracy. We're not alone down here."

"Sounds like the river was a boundary. We'll have to let everyone know to steer clear of it." Clarke shoved his shoulder. "So tell people, while I make sure everyone has food tonight."

Murphy already had the deer half skinned. His fingers nimble as they used the makeshift knife to separate the skin from the rest of the flesh. A remnant of his job on the Ark.

The last of the parties returned then with bags of mushrooms, nuts and berries, so Clarke kept busy by dividing the provisions. She passed on the news of grounders as they worked and the camp was quiet as they cooked and ate.


End file.
